Dallas Mavericks Blog

Derek Fisher’s sudden exit surprises teammates

SAN ANTONIO — The NBA giveth and taketh away. Within 24 hours, the Mavericks experienced the wrong end of a 2-for-1.

On Saturday they were rocked by the sudden departure of Derek Fisher. On Sunday, they welcomed Dirk Nowitzki back to the court, but walked out of the AT&T Center with an embarrassing 38-point loss to San Antonio.

Before the game, several Mavericks said they were unaware that Fisher, 38, had been considering asking the team to waive him so that he could return to his family.

Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle he knew about Fisher’s circumstances, and that Fisher’s knee injury probably “sealed the fate of the whole situation.

“It’s disappointing for us because of all the great, positive things that he brought in a relatively short length of time,” Carlisle said. “But I understood that this was something that could happen. I knew that being away from his family was a very challenging thing for him.

“I have nothing but great things to say about him, as a person, as a player and what he stood for.”